Determine the right amount of life insurance to protect your family. This calculator considers income replacement, debt payoff, education funding, and final expenses to estimate your total coverage needs, then subtracts your existing resources to show the gap.
Life insurance answers a single question: if you die unexpectedly, will the people who depend on your income be financially OK? For people with no dependents (single, no kids, no one financially relying on them), the answer is often "yes, they will" — and life insurance may not be needed at all. For everyone else, it's a fundamental piece of financial planning.
This calculator uses the standard "DIME" framework — Debt, Income, Mortgage, Education — to estimate total coverage needs. It then subtracts your existing coverage and liquid savings to show the gap. The result is a planning estimate, not an underwriting result; actual insurability and rates depend on your age, health, occupation, and lifestyle factors.
The most common rule of thumb is 10–15× annual income. This calculator does better by walking through the specific obligations: replacing income for a defined number of years, paying off the mortgage, clearing other debts, funding college, covering final expenses. The dollar amount that comes out is usually similar to the rule-of-thumb but more defensible — and you can see exactly what each input contributes.
Income $90K, replace 18 years Mortgage $300K, other debts $25K 2 kids, $60K college fund each $50K final expenses included Existing $200K (2× employer policy) Liquid savings $40K Need: 90×18 + 300 + 25 + 50 + 120 = $2,115K Existing resources: $240K Gap: $1,875K → recommend $2M term life, 20-year level term Annual cost for healthy 35-year-old: ≈ $400–600/yr depending on insurer and rating.
Income $130K, replace only 6 years (until spouse reaches 70) Mortgage paid off $20K other debts 0 dependent children $15K final expenses $300K existing coverage $400K liquid savings Need: 130×6 + 0 + 20 + 15 = $815K Existing resources: $700K Gap: $115K — relatively small, may need a small policy or none For empty-nesters with substantial savings, life insurance need shrinks substantially. Some retirees drop coverage entirely.
Use this calculator at every major life event: marriage, home purchase, first child, additional children, large salary increase. Coverage needs grow with obligations and shrink as savings build and dependents become independent.
For most people, term life insurance (10/20/30-year level term) is the right product: predictable price, high coverage for the dollar, and you can let it lapse when you no longer need it. Whole life, universal life, and other "permanent" policies are far more expensive per dollar of death benefit; they make sense in narrow cases (estate tax planning, certain business situations) and almost never as a general financial product for working families.
Buy when young and healthy. A 30-year-old non-smoker can lock in a 20-year $1M term policy for under $400/year; the same coverage at 50 with high blood pressure can cost 5–10× as much. Procrastination is expensive.
Calculate your net worth by subtracting liabilities from assets.
Calculate how much you need in your emergency fund based on monthly expenses.
Calculate how much disability insurance coverage you need to protect your income.
Estimate future long-term care costs for nursing homes, assisted living, and home care.
Calculate guaranteed payouts from a fixed annuity based on your investment and rate.
Project variable annuity growth including fees, expense ratios, and mortality charges.
How many years your family would need support
Savings and investments available to your family
Coverage Gap
$985,000
Total Needs
$1,135,000
Existing Resources
$150,000
Recommended Coverage
$985,000